


Orange Juice and Kisses

by Beanstalk



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Adorable Bruce Banner, Bruce Banner Feels, Bruce Banner is a doctor, Bruce never left, F/M, Fluff, Natasha Romanov Is Not A Robot, Post-Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie), Sick Natasha
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-06
Packaged: 2020-08-10 03:50:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,877
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20128876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beanstalk/pseuds/Beanstalk
Summary: This a prompt I received on Tumblr.Natasha is sick with the flu, but refuses to admit that she's sick. Luckily, Bruce is there to help.





	Orange Juice and Kisses

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first Brutasha fic and I hope I've done some justice to it.  
This was set after AoU

It was a lazy Saturday morning and Bruce was already up and about, a coffee mug in one hand and his Avengers tablet in the other. 

After the destruction of Johannesburg and the battle in Sokovia, he and Tony finally decided to further enhance VERONICA and the Hulkbuster for extra precaution in future combats the Avengers would be tangled with. 

Even when Bruce suggested that he stayed out of the fights, he couldn’t help but sort of agree with Tony when he said that less casualties happen when he's around. And Natasha had strongly convinced him that what happened in Johannesburg was the doing of Wanda and her powers when she was still on the side of Ultron and not him. That what they saw was not the real Hulk. It was hard to believe it at first, hesitating and just lingering around the lab when talks of missions aroused. But the words of Tony eventually got to him, and more importantly and surprisingly, he believed what Natasha had told him.

Upon taking a tentative sip of his black coffee, he looked up when a groan echoed through the hall of the living quarters and smiled when he saw that it was Natasha. But his face fell into a small frown when he saw the dark circles that surrounded her eyes, her nose a shade of pinkish-red and the thick blanket she had wrapped around herself.

"You're sick." He called out, watching her groan once again and dropping herself stomach down on the couch in the living room.

"I'm not." She responded. "I don't get sick. I _ never _ get sick."

Bruce chuckled and stood up from where he was sitting, making his way to the living room and taking a seat on one of the single arm chairs across from the occupied couch. 

“You’ve been sneezing non-stop since 2 days ago. You’re sick.” He frowned and placed his mug and tablet on the coffee table before reaching over to press his hand against her forehead. “I know I’m not that kind of doctor but you need bed rest and probably some orange juice.”

Natasha grunted in response and curled herself further into her giant blanket, making Bruce laugh.

Since he heard her sniffle for the first time since they’ve met, Bruce couldn’t help but feel slightly worried. He’s never seen Natasha sick. Injured yes, a lot of times, but inflicting a virus? He had also been very consistent in reminding her, since that day, that she take some medicines. He even made time to head over to the nearest pharmacy to buy her some of the necessary medication as well as some orange juice to hopefully make her feel better. The orange juice was happily gulped down but the medicines were tossed unceremoniously inside the kitchen cupboard where the canned food was kept. And no one really ate canned food in the compound since Sam and Vision were constantly making their meals from scratch.

“The medicines will be very much happy if they slide down into your tummy.” His voice was soft, a tone used for stubborn children.

“Do I look like a 5 year old to you?” She snapped and lifted her blanket to reveal her head, his eyes unblinking as he looked down at her. 

Without a word, Bruce stood up and lifted Natasha into his arms, carrying her back to their room. He prepared himself to be punched, kicked and possibly get thrown on the floor. Even with this flu, he knows that Natasha wasn't fragile. But to his relief, none of it happened. Even if their relationship had shifted from colleagues to friends to lovers, Bruce always made sure to ask Natasha of what he was doing was comfortable for her, and he was happy that she does the same. It has been a long time since either of them have engaged in a romantic relationship and what they now share, they both considered to be new territory. 

Despite the difficulties of their relationship, Bruce and Natasha agreed to help each other in making the most of what their feelings offered. Natasha was constant in reminding Bruce that the Hulk is no monster and neither is he. That the hulk was someone they can trust and understand together. And Bruce, regardless of his lack of proper communication skills towards people who weren’t Tony or Helen, assured Natasha that the assassin she was molded to be is not who she is now. That she was good and that she only aims for goodness rather than destruction.

They’ve both grown so much since the day he shouted at her in a hut in Kolkata and he never imagined that their relationship would evolve to be what it was now. 

When he looked down at Natasha, her eyes were shut and she was shivering, making him quicken his pace and kick the door of their bedroom open. He laid her down on the bed, pushed the blanket off her body and carefully peeled off her clothing, leaving her in her underwear, to have the cool air of the air conditioning unit brush against her heated skin. He made his way to their bathroom and filled a basin with warm water. Once he was settled on the floor by their bed, he dipped a cloth in the basin and wrung it damp before rubbing it again her limbs, her torso and her neck, in hopes that her fever would gradually go down. 

Standing from where he was kneeling, he discarded the basin in the bathroom and made his way to their closet. He picked out one of his shirts, a green sleeveless tee with the word 'SMASH!' written across from it - a gift from a fan, and carefully wore it on her. 

As he sat on the edge of the bed, watching the woman he adores suffer from the flu, he reached up and moved her hair away from her face and smiled when he saw that she looked better than how she was a while ago. He then took her hand and pressed a kiss on each of her knuckles before caressing it gently, his eyes studying her features like how he always did when she wasn’t looking. Loving how her beauty radiates even more when she looks calm and relaxed instead of rattled from a tiring mission.

He leaned over and pressed a kiss on her forehead before he made his way to leave the room and give her time to rest and heal on her own.

It was still a funny thought to him at how drastic everything had changed since they first fought together. And it was still funny when the memory of how the others found out about the both of them brushed against his mind. 

_ “And checkmate.” Natasha grinned as she pushed his king out of the board. _

_ “I’m never gonna get better at this.” He sighed and chuckled, putting the chess pieces back on their place on the board. _

_ “Hey.. don’t beat yourself up. You almost had me a few times but you just didn’t see them.” Natasha teased and his eyes widened when she moved to sit beside him. “But I’d like to claim my prize now.” He looked at her with calculating eyes, suddenly regretting what he agreed to. _

_ What prize could one Natasha Romanoff even want? A bait for her next mission? Someone to taste some unknown substance SHIELD found? A test subject for a new weapon? Or maybe swallow an atomic bomb? He could never think of a possible thing she would want from him. Or maybe surrender himself for an autopsy to a weird SHIELD mad scientist, to have them further understand the Hulk. But whatever it was, he now knew how to stand his ground and possibly reason himself out fro- _

_ His thoughts were interrupted when he felt soft lips press against his. His eyes grew wide and his body stiffened when his mind finally registered that Natasha Romanoff was kissing him. _

_ “I- w-what did y-you do?” He stuttered, blinked rapidly and pressed his fingers against his lips. The tingling sensation of the kiss scattering throughout his body and sending sparks up his spine and to his heart. _

_ “I just took my prize.” Natasha grinned and moved herself closer to him. Her hands moved to rest on his shoulders, thumb gently grazing against the side of his neck. “I know.. that I’m not the only one feeling this thing between us.” She started, her eyes locked on the collar of his shirt. “And I’m tired of tiptoeing around when what we have is already palpable enough to grab.” A soft sigh leaves her lips and Bruce thinks it’s because she wants to give up on this feeling. _

_ It’s true. Everything she just said was true. The feeling - like, admiration, crush, love - whatever it was, it was there. And as the days passed by that they spent each moment together, the unspoken spark between them only kept getting stronger. But he was scared. It had been too long since he last involved himself in such relationship but admittedly, he had grown attached to Natasha. Every time she wasn't around, he'd find himself wandering around aimlessly in the compound, waiting for any sign of her arrival. And when she was near, he'd feel a tightening in his chest, a sensation he knew that was associated to admiration. But he was scared and he was unsure and he was confused how one amazing, beautiful and breathtaking-figuratively and literally-Natasha Romanoff would have feelings for one dorky scientist who likes to isolate himself in a lab all day, named Bruce Banner. _

_ It was a risk. A huge risk for them, especially him, to engage in romantic affairs. He’s not normal. He’s got temper issues and the other guy is just within reach, ready to spring out like a jack-in-a-box. What if one day he loses control and possibly hurt Natasha? He knew he would never forgive himself if that ever happened._

_"But.. I'm me. Aren't you scared?" He sounded resigned. "No good will come from this, Nat."_

_"You don't know that." Natasha grabbed his face with both her hands, searching his eyes for a glimmer of hope. "We can work this out. And you know it." He reached up and held one of Natasha's hand, his eyebrows furrowing as he tried to understand her reasoning. "I've never wanted anything so bad in my life, Bruce. I want to run with this."_

_He was confused. He didn't know what to say, how to react to this sudden revelation. But he shared her sentiment, shared her feelings. Should he run with this as well? Run with her? Then it dawned on him. If he said no, that would mean a life with no Natasha. A life without the person he cared for the most, cared more than Tony, cared more than himself. He couldn't imagine it- if he was an utter mess when she was just gone for a couple days, what would be of him if she was out of his life permanently. _

_He shook his head from his thoughts and took a deep breath, finally deciding what he wants to make out of this._

_"I'll run." He breathe. "I'll run with you." He said in a soft voice before leaning down to press his lips against hers._

_ The smile she made in the kiss was enough reassurance that she got his answer to whatever question that was lurking around them. He wrapped his arms around her waist and eventually pulled her to his lap, holding her close against him. _ _The kiss was soft and sweet, not rushed. They both took their time. Relished in the beautiful moment of their hearts meeting and coming to a mutual understanding. He would do everything for this woman, and he felt that the Hulk would cooperate with him as long as Natasha is involved. _

_ He felt her arms wrap around his neck, pulling him closer, their surroundings forgotten. _

_ “Wowee!” A loud cry from Tony echoed in the room as he, Steve and Clint came back from a meeting with Nick, making Bruce pull away and Natasha sit still on his lap, her expression unfazed. “Romanoff and Banner. You owe me, Barton.” _

_ “You were making bets on us?” Natasha’s voice was silent but deadly that made Clint and Steve gulp audibly and Bruce sigh, his hand gently caressing the small of her back to calm her down. _

He sighed when he found the medicines he bought sitting in the cupboard of canned food. He took one tablet, grabbed the jug of orange juice from the fridge and the mortar and pestle before crushing the tablet into a powdery texture. He made sure the tablet had the texture of baby powder before dumping it in a glass and filling it with orange juice. He stirred well, eyes concentrating on the orange liquid, making sure to leave no trace of the medicine.

He felt his nervousness slowly crawl into his veins as he made his way back to the room. He knew Natasha would detect the medicine. She was a master spy after all. But he’d rather battle her with this than allow her to suffer continuously just because of the flu. Though he was silently praying that she doesn’t throw the juice at him. Just thinking about the mess it would make already made his head hurt.

Bruce peeked into the room and saw that Natasha was still asleep, head perfectly snug on the pillow and breathing slow and even, making him release a small sigh of relief. He placed the glass of juice on the bedside table and gently shook her awake, pressing a soft kiss on her temple for added gentleness.

“Babe.." He whispered. "can you drink this for me?”

Natasha grunted and slowly opened her eyes, sitting upright on the bed with Bruce’s help. He placed his hand on her forehead and hummed in approval before holding the glass to her.

“Your fever seemed to have gone down. The sponge bath helped and this will help even further.” 

Natasha stayed silent and looked at him then at the glass with suspicion before taking it with both hands and downing it all at once. “I cannot taste anything!” She groaned and returned the glass to Bruce.

Bruce then grinned in success, mentally giving himself a self-five before placing the glass back on the bedside table. “Your taste buds will go back to normal with added rest. Now go back to sleep. Doctor’s orders.”

“I thought you weren’t that kind of doctor?” Natasha teased but laid back down on the bed as instructed.

“For you, I’ll be anything you want me to be. Now rest.” He smiled and pressed a gentle kiss on her temple once again before taking the glass and leaving the room to give her some peace and quiet.

With Natasha being sick, Bruce decided to stay in the lab and check up on Natasha every hour and giving her dinner of corn and chicken soup and his 'drugged' orange juice every 4 hours. He never imagined that being a medical doctor would be this tiring-and he was only taking care of someone who caught the flu. By 6am, he finally passed out on the couch of the laboratory, his lab coat draped over him in a makeshift blanket.

It was 10am when he stirred from his sleep, a groan leaving his lips from the growing headache and from the realization that he forgot to check on Natasha. Bruce moved to sit up on the couch, his eyes still closed but hummed in delight when the smell of coffee kissed his nose. Slowly, he opened his eyes and saw a steaming mug sitting on the lab bench, suddenly curious of who placed it there. _ Tony? It couldn't have been Nat since she's still sick. Maybe Sam or Vision?_

He yawned and stood up, stretching his limbs and groaning as some of his stiff bones popped audibly in the lab, powering his body back to life and walked towards the mug to take a much needed sip of the delicious coffee. His eyes then diverted on the note that laid under the mug, his name written in beautiful script with a kiss mark pressed beside it and he immediately knew who his angel was.

A smile slowly formed on his lips when he read the note, sitting himself on the lab stool as he enjoyed the warmth of the coffee and the warmth that slowly enveloped his heart.

_ Bruce, _

_ You were right. I was sick. But you know how stubborn I am. I feel much better now and I know it was because of you constantly taking care of me since the morning until the late hours of the night. There are pancakes and bacon waiting for you in the kitchen. And don’t worry, no one will touch them since I made it clear that I was the one who made them. _

_ I’m just out for a few errands, apparently we’re all out of orange juice. I’ll see you later. _

_ Always yours, _ _  
_ _ Natasha _

_ P.S. I know you kept putting medicine in the orange juice you kept making me drink. Thank you. _

**Author's Note:**

> catch me at tumblr - beanstalk007  
kudos and comments are appreciated


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